The first ever international football match was contested between Scotland and England.
Scotland was one of the earliest modernfootballing nations, withGlasgow clubQueen's Park early pioneers of the game throughout the UK. More clubs formed in Scotland, resulting in the commencement of the first major competition in 1873, theScottish Cup, then the founding of theScottish Football League in 1890. With the official sanctioning ofprofessionalism, theOld Firm ofCeltic andRangers became dominant in Scotland, and remain so, although other clubs have enjoyed brief periods of success too.
TheScottish Football Association (SFA) were prominent in the administration of football since the early days of the game, and in 1882 agreed with the other home-nation associations on a uniform set of rules. They continue to play a role in this, with the SFA currently forming part of theInternational Football Association Board along with each of the other home-nation associations and four representatives fromFIFA.
Queens Park's insistence on remaining amateur saw their early prominence in Scottish football fade, and theOld Firm ofCeltic andRangers became the dominant clubs. Celtic won six successive league titles during the first decade of the 20th century, during which time they also became the first club to win the league and Scottish Cup in the same season (the "double"). They also won four successive titles the following decade.[6] In theinter-war years, Rangers won 14 of the 20 league titles competed for,[6] and a few years after the end of the Second World War were the first club to win all three major domestic competitions in the same season in Scotland (the "treble"). Both Old Firm clubs have since wonnine successive league titles; Celtic from 1966 to 1974 and then again from 2012 to 2020, and Rangers from 1989 to 1997. Rangers have won the league championship a total of 55 times, a joint world record.[7][8][9] Other clubs have enjoyed brief periods of success:Heart of Midlothian andHibernian during the late 1940s and 1950s[10][11] andAberdeen, and to a lesser extentDundee United, in the early 1980s.[12]
Following the first international in 1872 between Scotland and England, over the next 50 years the national side played exclusively against the other three Home Nations – England,Wales andIreland.[13] TheBritish Home Championship was established in 1883, making these games competitive. Scotland won the first ever championship, and won outright on ten occasions up to theFirst World War and shared the title on a further 6 times with at least one other team.[14] Scotland played their first match outside the British Isles in 1929, beatingNorway 7–3 inBergen. Scotland then contested regular friendly matches against European opposition and enjoyed wins againstGermany andFrance before losing to theAustrian "Wunderteam" andItaly in 1931.[13]
Scotland took part in their first major international tournament when they qualified for the1954 FIFA World Cup inSwitzerland, and then again in 1958 for theWorld Cup in Sweden, failing to progress from the first round in both tournaments. After a barren spell in the 1960s, Scotland qualified for the1974 FIFA World Cup inWest Germany, where the team was unbeaten but failed to progress due to inferiorgoal difference. The national side also qualified for the1978 FIFA World Cup inArgentina, amidst unprecedented publicity and optimism.[15] They failed to win either of their first two games, and a win over theNetherlands wasn't enough to prevent another first round exit.[15] The national side qualified for the next three World Cups in 1982, 1986 and 1990, but also exited at the first round in each. Scotland qualified for the finals ofUEFA European Championship for the first time in1992, and repeated the feat for the1996 Euros in England. A further major tournament was reached when they took part in the1998 FIFA World Cup inFrance, but then went over 20 years without qualifying for a major tournament. Scotland finally ended this barren run when they qualified for theCOVID-19 delayed Euro 2020 tournament.
The Scottish Football Association (SFA) were prominent in the administration of football since the early days of the game. In 1882 they met up with otherhome-nation associations and agreed on a uniform set of rules for football. The home-nation associations went on to form theInternational Football Association Board (IFAB) to approve any changes to the rules. It was a proposal by the SFA that led to theoffside rule being changed in 1925, where a player would now be onside if a minimum of two (instead of three) opposing players are between him and the goal line. IFAB continues to meet twice a year, once to decide on possible changes to the rules governing football and once to deliberate on its internal affairs. The organisation is now made up of representatives from the SFA, the other three home-nation associations, and theFédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). Each home-nation association has one vote and FIFA has four. IFAB deliberations must be approved by three-quarters of the vote, which translates to at least six votes. Thus, FIFA's approval is necessary for any IFAB decision, but FIFA alone cannot change the Laws of the Game – they need to be agreed by at least two of the home-nation members. As of 2016, all members must be present for a binding vote to proceed.[16]
Scotland's oldest club in continuous existence and longest established clubQueen's Park is formed.[19]
Queen's Park compile "The Rules of the Field", a set of rules based on the common Association rules of the time, but with notable changes to theoffside rule.[2]
Queen's Park become the first ever Scottish football team to participate in official competition when they play in the1871–72 FA Cup semi-final againstWanderers, the match ends goalless. Queen's, however, can not afford to extend their stay long enough for the tie to be replayed and are forced to withdraw.[24]
Rangers are formed in March. In May, Rangers play their first ever match, a friendly against Callander, drawing 0-0, played at Fleshers' Haugh (now known asGlasgow Green).[25]
Vale of Leven win the Scottish Cup for the first time after beatingRangers 3–2 in a second replay – thereby becoming the first team other than Queen's Park to win the trophy.[26]
Andrew Watson is widely considered to be the firstblack person to play football at international level.
Dr. John Smith becomes the first player to score ahat-trick in a Scottish Cup Final, netting all three ofQueen's Park's goals in a 3–1 win overDumbarton.[28] The final is a replay after the first match was won 2–1 by Queen's Park but declared void due to a protest from Dumbarton.[29]
The first known women's match to be played under football association rules takes place atEaster Road. A team representing Scotland beat England 3–0, with Lily St Clare becoming the first ever recorded female goalscorer.[33]
TheBritish Home Championship (also known as the Home International Championship) becomes an annual competition contested between the UK's four national teams,Scotland,England,Wales andIreland.[36] Scotland go on to win the first championship after winning all three of their matches.[37]
Arbroath defeatBon Accord36–0 in the first round of the Scottish Cup, a record scoreline in a major competition in British football.Jock Petrie scores 13 goals in the game, the highest number of goals by a player in a single game in competitive British football.[40] This scoreline narrowly beats out another Scottish Cup match on the same day whereDundee Harp beatAberdeen Rovers 35–0, with the referee noting a 37–0 win, but accepting the lower tally from a Dundee Harp secretary after acknowledging he may have miscounted.
Rangers win the Scottish Cup for the first time, defeating Celtic 3–1 in the first cup final between the two teams who would become known as theOld Firm.[26]
Celtic build the first everpress box at a football stadium in Britain, located high up on the main stand atCeltic Park.[46][47]
Celtic and Rangers finish the league level on 41 points, and aplay-off atHampden Park is arranged to decide the championship. Celtic win 2–1, clinching the first of what transpired to be six successive league titles.[55][56]
TheSFA, along with the other threehome-nation associations, withdraw fromFIFA, primarily due to issues over playing ex-enemy countries from the First World War.[62][63]
Following a proposal by the SFA, theoffside rule is changed: a player is now onside if a minimum of two (instead of three) opposing players are between him and the goal line.[65]
The SFA, along with the other three home-nation associations, once again withdraw from FIFA, due to the home nations reluctance to cede ultimate authority on football matters to FIFA.[62]
Jimmy McGrory retires from playing football. He scored 550 goals in competitive matches for Celtic,Clydebank, Scotland and theScottish League XI. He remains the highest goalscorer in British football.[72]
Scotland's 3–2 defeat atHampden Park in the wartime international againstEngland is watched by 133,000 fans, the largest attendance at any match in Britain during wartime.[74][75]
Hampden Park hosts a friendly match between aUK representative team and aRest of the World XI. The game is dubbed "Match of the Century", with the UK winning 6–1 in front of 135,000 spectators. The gate receipts of £35,000 are donated toFIFA to help assist with the financial losses incurred as a result of the Second World War.[76]
East Fife are the second winners of the League Cup, after defeatingFalkirk 4–1 in the replayed final of the 1947–48 competition.[78]
Rangers win the league title, League Cup and theScottish Cup in season 1948–49, thereby becoming the first club to win thedomestic treble in Scotland.[77]
Afterqualifying for theWorld Cup,Scotland are knocked-out after a 1–0 defeat byAustria and a 7–0 defeat byUruguay.Andy Beattie, appointed manager for the World Cup campaign, is Scotland's first manager but resigns after the loss to Austria.[84]
Bill Struth stands down as manager ofRangers after 34 years in the role, having won 18 league titles. He is succeeded byScot Symon.[77]
The1955 Scottish Cup Final between Celtic andClyde is the first final in Scotland to be televised live, and ends in a 1–1 draw.[85][86] Clyde win the replay 1–0.[86]
Aberdeen win the league title for the first time.[6]
Hampden Park hosts the1960 European Cup Final betweenReal Madrid and Eintracht Frankfurt. Real Madrid win 7–3 in one of the best known European finals, and regarded by many observers as one of the greatest matches of all time. The crowd of 134,000 is a record for a European final.[96][97]
Dundee win the league title for the first time.[6]
A Scottish Cup First Round tie betweenAirdrieonians andStranraer is postponed a record 33 times (due to poor weather);Airdrieonians win the tie 4–0 before losing 6–0 to eventual champions,Rangers.[100]
Kilmarnock win the league title for the first time, defeatingHeart of Midlothian 2–0 on the final day of the season to win the league on goal average ahead of Heart of Midlothian.[6]
The crowd of 122,714 that watches Rangers win over Celtic in the1973 Scottish Cup Final is the last attendance in excess of 100,000 at any match in Britain.[74]
Dixie Deans andJoe Harper both score hat-tricks in the1974 Scottish League Cup Final.[28] Deans became the first (and so far, only) player to score hat-tricks in Scottish Cup and League Cup finals.[28]
Hibernian become the first professional club in Britain to bearsponsorship on their shirts.[125]
Clydebank bolt wooden bench seating to their ground's terraces (reducing its capacity under 10,000 to avoid having to comply with expensive safety legislation), and thusKilbowie Park accommodating 9,950 becomes the firstall-seater stadium in Britain.[126]
Scotland are knocked out of the1978 FIFA World Cup at the group stage, having taken three points (one win, one draw) from three matches.[127]
Jock Stein leaves Celtic, having won 25 trophies including the European Cup in 1967, for a brief spell as manager ofLeeds United, before returning north to take over fromAlly MacLeod as manager of Scotland.[128][129]
Alex Ferguson becomes manager ofAberdeen, who he goes on to lead to what several sources describe as "unprecedented success", taking over fromBilly McNeill who moved to Celtic as their manager.[130][131][132]
Celtic beatRangers in theScottish Cup Final. Thousands of fans from both sides take to the field afterwards and engage in a pitched battle with one another. The aftermath sees both clubs fined £20,000 and various legislation implemented, including the prohibition of the sale of alcohol at football matches in Scotland.[57][133]
Hibernian are the first Scottish club to installundersoil heating, at a cost of £60,000,[134] and which is used later in the season to enable their home game againstFalkirk to be played despite the wintry weather conditions.[134][135]
Scotland qualify for the1986 World Cup,[143] but managerJock Stein suffers aheart attack and dies during a qualifying match withWales.[144] Alex Ferguson takes charge of the side for their playoff game againstAustralia and for the World Cup.
Aberdeen win their second league title in a row, and, as of 2025, remain the last non-Old Firm side to win the title, in a record spanning 40 years.
Graeme Souness is appointedplayer/manager of Rangers. This marks the start of a significant change at Rangers, as they spend significant amounts of money in attracting star players to the club from England.[146]
Having qualified for the first time, Scotland take part in the finals of theUEFA European Championship. They are knocked out at the group stage ofUEFA Euro 1992, having taken two points (one win) from three matches.[159]
Rangers become the first British club to compete in the group stages of the revampedUEFA Champions League, where they went undefeated but eventually finished second in their group behind eventual (controversial) winnersMarseille.[146][160]
Top clubs attempt a 'Super League' breakaway followinga similar event in England; the move fails but prompts some reconstruction of the League setup which takes effect two years later.[161]
Fergus McCann takes over as owner ofCeltic, rescuing the club from financial ruin. He goes on to reconstitute the club as a PLC, which in turn leads to the most successful share-issue in the history of British football.[43]
A new record low attendance is set in the Scottish Premier League, with only 431 fans turning out to see Gretna lose 2–1 to Inverness Caledonian Thistle at Fir Park in Motherwell.[191]
Celtic managerNeil Lennon and two high-profile supporters of the club are sentparcel bombs. The device sent to Lennon is intercepted by theRoyal Mail, whilst the two other devices are delivered but treated as suspicious packages and not opened.[199]
Scottish Premiership clubs resume training on 11 June 2020, with a view to starting the2020–21 Premiership season on the first weekend of August 2020, albeit stillbehind closed doors due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[234]
Scotland qualify forUEFA Euro 2020, delayed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, by winning a play-off againstSerbia onpenalties, their first major tournament since 1998.[235]
Rangers prevent Celtic from winning a record 10 league titles in a row by winning the Scottish Premiership and their 55th league title.[241][242]
Brechin City become the first club to be relegated from the SPFL into theHighland League after defeat toKelty Hearts in the League Two play-off, their third relegation in four seasons.
Scotland are knocked out of the COVID-19 delayed UEFA Euro 2020 at the group stage, with 1 point from 3 matches played.[243]
All leagues above amateur level are connected for the first time as part of thesenior pyramid system, after theSJFA East Region (Midlands League),SJFA North Region, andNorth Caledonian League join as feeders to the Highland League,[244] with the winners of each of these leagues able to participate in the Scottish Cup regardless of licence.Carnoustie Panmure andInvergordon are the first teams from the Midlands League and North Caledonian League, respectively, under this system, with none from the SJFA North asBanks O' Dee won the league and the Scottish Cup place does not get passed down to the runner up should the winner already qualify through an SFA Licence. Banks O' Dee become the first side to take advantage of this, getting promoted into the Highland League at the expense ofFort William who were forced to forfeit their ties due to being unable to field a team.[245]
TheVideo Assistant Referee (VAR) is introduced to the Scottish Premiership on matchday 12 in October,[248] having previously been used in Scotland for games at UEFA Euro 2020, as well as Champions League group stage, and Europa League knockout stage matches.
Inverness Caledonian Thistle become the first Scottish Cup finalists to have been eliminated in the same tournament, after they lost 2–0 toQueen's Park, but were reinstated after it was found out Queen's Park fielded an ineligible player. They lost 3–1 to Celtic in the final.
At a summit atLoch Lomond, theIFAB discuss the controversial implementation ofBlue Cards, where it is decided that trials of the cards will not be implemented further than grassroots level.[254][255] Following the conclusion of the meeting,FIFA President,Gianni Infantino, is spotted at St Mirren's 2–1 home win over Aberdeen.
Buckie Thistle are controversially denied a spot in the League Two playoffs despite having SPFL licences being deferred by theSFA until after the playoffs were due to end.East Kilbride were given a bye to faceStranraer in the final.
Scotland are knocked out ofUEFA Euro 2024 at the group stage, having taken one point from three games.[257]
Inverness Caledonian Thistle are relegated to League One and enter administration despite talks with multiple investors, including Danish Billionaire andFC Midtjylland owner,Anders Povlsen. They are the first side to enter administration sinceHeart of Midlothian in 2013 and first to have points deducted in season due to administration sinceDunfermline in 2012–13.[258]
Bonnyrigg Rose are controversially deducted 6 points by an SPFL Tribunal due to the gradient of the pitch atNew Dundas Park. The club had been downgraded from a Bronze to an Entry Level licence in September, despite giving the league and the FA notice that they intend to implement a synthetic turf at the end of the 2024–25 season.[259]
Dumbarton enter administration over "non receipt of funds owed from the sale of land in 2021". Like Inverness, they are deducted 15 points, and move to the bottom of the League One table.
Queen's Park defeatRangers 1–0 in the fifth round of theScottish Cup; the win away atIbrox Stadium by the second-tier side being described by theBBC as "one of the biggest upsets in Scottish Cup history".[260]
Bonnyrigg Rose have their Bronze licence reinstated upon review after it being controversially downgraded the previous October, however, the six point deduction was not overturned.[261]
Police Scotland say they are open to talks with theSPFL and theScottish FA over overturning the Alcohol Ban at matches in Scotland, which came into effect following the1980 Scottish Cup final riot, and has remained in place ever since.[262] However,First MinisterJohn Swinney stated that "the ban would not be lifted any time soon",[263] with critics pointing out the financial benefits for clubs at the lower end of the pyramid, as well as being branded a "Classist Snob" owing to the fact fans have to pay high prices for hospitality, and aren't allowed to drink in view of the pitch, but rugby fans are fully entrusted.[264]
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